"They (critics) said that I have been very optimistic when I said that recovery has begun and that we were going out from the crisis. It is still very fragile, very fragile but there is something happening in the economy," reported a Chinese state run agency citing Hollande.

During a visit to Roche-sur-Yon in western France to promote the Socialists' roadmap to create jobs, the President reiterated his pledge to reverse the unemployment trend by this year-end.

"We will reach the target," he said, referring to his promise to create 100,000 state-sponsored contracts to help the poorly skilled unemployed youth find jobs.